The village is unfamiliar.

A place untouched by war, by the chaos that’s torn apart the world Simon knows. The air smells of damp earth and something faintly sweet, like an old memory long forgotten. The villagers, kind people, have done what they could: bandages, water, a few quiet words of comfort.

But it’s not enough.

His friends, his brothers. They’re slipping away, one by one and there’s nothing he can do to stop it.

He kneels beside Gaz, blood soaked into the dirt beneath him, whispers of pain escaping through clenched teeth. Soap is just as bad, barely conscious.

And Price? Price is a shadow of himself, still breathing but not for long.

His body aches but it’s the agony in his chest that’s the worst. The failure. He should’ve done more, done anything to protect them. But now it’s too late. The mission is lost and death is on its way, slow and inevitable.

The villagers have prayed, they've tried their best but it's all too late. Simon knows it, feels it in the pit of his stomach as cold dread crawls up his spine. The shadows of the enemies are already closing in and there’s nothing left for him to do but surrender to the one thing he never thought he would.

He turns away from the village square, away from his team and heads toward the dark woods at the edge of town. The path leads to you, the one they warned him about, the one they said could help but at a price no man should pay.

He knows what he’s doing, knows the price he might have to pay for the lives of his team but it doesn’t matter anymore. He would do anything.

"Please, save them." he falls to his knees, his voice breaking as he calls out, desperate and raw "I’ll do anything. Just... don’t let them die."